There's a Garden
by resoundingdeluge
Summary: An extended version of the scene from "The Coming Storm" in Volume 6, in which Blake and Yang have a candid conversation at Brunswick Farms.


Yang stood still, white as a ghost as she kept her eyes fixed upon the window. Her hand trembled uncontrollably as she tried to shake off the lingering, icy sensation of dread that had spread through her entire body like a virus when she thought she'd seen Adam Taurus just outside of the glass. Looking once again, she saw only a tree, and began to feel incredibly vulnerable. It was a feeling she hated, and a feeling that only one person was still capable of chasing away with her smile alone.

"Do you think Adam's still out there?" Yang asked in a shaky voice. She kept her eyes locked upon the offending tree, unsure why she had even asked the question. Between her nervous jittering and worry over her hallucination, Yang only heard about half of what Blake said in response. Even then, the few words that she did catch barely registered, and she found herself drowning in the persistent, oppressive sensation of helplessness that 'seeing' Adam brought her once again.

"Hey, I'm not leaving, and if we ever see him again, I promise I'll be there," Blake began as she took the blonde's hand. "And I'll protect you."

_That_, of all things, managed to snap Yang from her reverie of hopelessness. Her lilac eyes immediately flicked downward to Blake's fingers, intertwined with her own. The sight filled her heart with a warmth that she hadn't felt in ages- a warmth that she thought she had completely lost from her life, and one within which she used to feel most comfortable and alive.

The warmth of bubbling, destructive, nearly psychotic fury.

"_What?_" Yang asked as she fought to keep her tone even. A small quiver worked its way into the question, and she knew that it wouldn't be long before her anger bubbled over.

"What…?" Blake repeated, her eyes going wide as the feeling of unease and terror seemed to seep out of Yang's hand and into her body, climbing her arm like a snake making its way up a tree. The paralyzing feeling lasted just long enough to distract Blake as Yang pulled her hand away from the gentle gesture and swung it outward in a vicious backhand across the faunus' cheek. Blake stumbled backward from the impassioned force of the blow and hissed in pain as she tripped over a low shelf. She hit the ground with a pained yelp, and her feline ears flicked in annoyance at the sound of rattling cans of paint and tools hitting the concrete as the metal storage bracket tumbled to the floor.

"You'll _be there?_" Yang asked, her fury clear and building in her tone with every word. "You'll _protect me?_" she hissed as she stepped over the shelf. Blake scooted backward on her rear while Yang continued to approach, and the faunus ended up with her back pressed against the wall.

"Yang, what are y-"

"_Shut up!_" Yang roared as she loomed over her teammate, her fists clenched. The girl's chest heaved as she breathed rapidly through her nose, considering her options. Her hand trembled once again, but not in fear, before she brought her arm up and slammed her fist into the wall several feet above Blake's head. The entire shack seemed to shake against the force of the punch, and Blake's ears flattened as she instinctively grabbed her head with her hands and began to cower.

"_Yang!_"

"_No!_" Yang replied as she drew her fist back from the wall and let it linger in its raised position. It took all of her willpower to refrain from rocketing her arm forward and shattering Blake's teeth, but she eventually managed to lower the limb. "No. This is where you listen. This is the part where we get to have a little talk that I've been holding in for the sake of the group. I've been taking punishment all of my life and bottling it up until I explode… but not this time. Not anymore," Yang threatened as she began to pace a tight line, her boots thumping heavily against the floor.

Blake brought her right hand down to massage her aching cheek as she felt hot tears threatening to fall. She wanted so badly to say something in protest, but she knew that doing so would only bring more pain to both of them.

"I… would have done _anything_ for you, Blake," Yang began as she continued to walk, keeping her eyes far above the faunus. "There was a time when you and I were closer than anyone else on Team RWBY. I used to look at you, and think you were a puzzle that I wanted to solve. A puzzle that would become something beautiful and worth treasuring once you were complete… but now, I think I get it. I can see who you _really_ are."

"Yang," Blake replied in a small, throaty voice as she continued to stare at the other girl's boots. "I thought… before the dance, back at Beacon... when you came to find me, and we t-"

"And we talked about my mother!?" Yang exploded as she diverted her path to march right up to Blake. The faunus drew her legs in closer to her body as Yang doubled over and leaned forward, putting her face right up to Blake's. "When I told you that I was _abandoned_ as a little girl, and I risked my life and my sister's just to get back the feeling of being loved and appreciated? Is that when you thought that you and I might have something special, Blake? Or was it only after I gave up a _limb_ to protect you? When did you start to feel something? When we talked alone that night, when I lost my _fucking_ arm, or when you ran out on me right afterward? Answer me!"

Blake shrank back at the final string of words as they increased in volume, and cringed as she brought her hands up to cover her eyes. Suddenly, the tears that had threatened to spill forth began to work their way down her cheeks in messy trails, and she found her voice caught in her throat before she could throw it forward to protect herself.

"That was a _year_ ago, Blake," Yang reminded the other girl as she stood up straight once again. The warm, inspiring feeling of righteous fury began to fizzle out and became replaced with an unfamiliar, cold sensation. Despite the sudden shift, Yang found that it felt oddly fitting and satisfying- perhaps even more so than her comfortable rage. "We were here for you both of those times, and even before that, when you and Weiss fought over your involvement in the White Fang. Ruby, Weiss, and _especially_ me… and yet every single time, you _left_. You ran. You _abandoned_ me when I was holding out a hand for you, and I just kept right on doing it, until I finally lost it. Poetic, isn't it?" Yang asked with a humorless laugh. She shrugged and shook her head before turning and beginning to walk toward the door of the shack.

Blake remained silent bar her sobbing as she remained on the floor, not even trying to rise.

"And by the way," Yang started as her hand lingered upon the doorknob, "I talked to both Sun and Ilia, on the way to the train station. I want to say that I was surprised that you ran out on Ilia without so much as a word when you decided to leave the White Fang, but I'm not. And the fact that Sun started to feel that you were getting cold and pushing him back as time went on is just… it's sad, honestly. The two people who would have still been willing to put up with your bullshit and accept you for all of your flaws, and you just had to push them away. They told me that you even ran out on your _parents, _after you left the White Fang, when you're the only one in the entire team with a stable family. You couldn't even be bothered to call Ilia or your family and just let them know you were okay. You know what I think? I think you've gotten comfortable being broken, and when someone comes along and offers to help you fix yourself, it terrifies you."

"Yang, please don't leave!" Blake yelled suddenly as she dragged herself up to her feet. She remained in place, and finally found the strength to lock eyes with her teammate once again. "_Please_. I'll… I want to fix this. I want to fix _myself_. Just don't go…"

Yang slowly turned to face Blake once again, and folded her arms across her chest as she narrowed her eyes. Nearly a full minute passed as the two stared across the shack at each other, until Yang finally looked away and shook her head.

"I'm not leaving Team RWBY, and I'm not going to ask you to leave, either. But I _am_ going to be watching you_, closely_. The others might be more inclined to forgive and forget, but I showed you my oldest, deepest wound, and you stuck your dirty fingers into it and wrenched it open even more. If you want help, and you want to make good on that promise… then _show me_. Actions speak louder than words, Blake, and your actions toward me, and toward everyone else in your life since we met and even before, have said a hell of a lot. We _need_ you on this mission, Blake, so I'm going to set my own shit aside and keep quiet like I have been, to avoid sowing even more bad blood. Maybe, over time, we can work together as partners again. Maybe… _maybe_ we'll even be friends, if you get serious. But as far as 'us'? As far as anything past that? I can't trust you with my heart again. We're done," Yang warned as she raised her eyes back to Blake's. "And if you _ever_ touch me like that again… you're in for a world of hurt, no matter who's around to see it."

Blake bit her bottom lip and used the back of her hand to wipe at her eyes. "…I'm sorry, Yang."

"Yeah," Yang agreed as she turned and opened the door. "So am I."

Blake jumped slightly as the door slammed, and she brought her hands up to hug her upper arms as she closed her eyes. Within seconds, she simply slipped down onto her knees sniffled, knowing that she had a lot of thinking to do.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

_Happy Volume 7._

**-RD**


End file.
